In case you haven’t discovered Kickstarter yet, we wanted to introduce you to this amazing platform that can bring your ideas to life via crowd funding. Since 2009, Kickstarter have facilitated over 48,000 projects with over $700 million pledged.

The concept is simple – people donate to your project without receiving any shares or copyright. In exchange projects generally offer various “perks” for different contribution levels. They needn’t be big – this is just a way to thank your supporters in an honest and personal way.

How can I start?

Kickstarter is only open to creative projects and does not cater for charity groups. As a first step, check the project guidelines. If you believe this platform is suitable for your project/idea, press the Start Your Project button and give it a go (it is free). At the moment the website operates in the USA, Canada and the UK but an Australia/New Zealand website is in the works. There are various crowd sourcing platforms but this one is the most popular so it goes without saying that competition is high and not every proposal is approved. If your project is not eligible or accepted for whatever reason, it would be worth trying one of the alternatives such as IndieGoGo or Pozible.

Big or small – every project can become a reality

How much money to ask for?

• Estimate the cost of your project including manufacturing, staff, marketing etc. It would be useful to call/email around and get quotes and prices before you start.

• Consider that a cut of around 10% from your total raised amount would go to cover various fees such as Kickstarter’s fees (5%), Amazon payment’s fees (3-5%), taxes etc. (You can view the complete fee breakdowns here)

• Learn from other projects. Kickstarter statistics shows that the most commonly funded amount is between $5,000 – $10,000. At the other end there are projects that received millions of dollars.

• Be realistic. It is better to ask for a smaller amount and promote the project with the goal of raising higher funds. After all, you will continue accepting donations up till your deadline, even if you reach your target earlier.

One of the most successful ever! Raising over 10 million dollars. Oh yeah!

I’m in – what’s next?

Congratulations, now the real work starts, as you need to promote your project and reach your target within the time period allocated. If the amount pledged doesn’t reach or exceed the target, you will receive nothing! On the other hand, there are projects that have managed to raise four times their original target. One of the most important elements is creating a video that truthfully tells your story and engages with the community.
We think it is useful to take a few weeks to prepare your marketing plan and learn from previous projects how to build interest and gain community support.

Just between the two of us… do you have a secret project in your drawer?
Hopefully you found some encouragement in this post. If not, check out the most popular projects at Kickstarter. We will keep you inspired with a post about our favorite crowd-funded projects coming soon.